title: Regulatory control of high levels of carotenoid accumulation in potato tubers.
abstract: Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tubers contain a wide range of carotenoid contents. To decipher the key factors controlling carotenoid levels in tubers, four potato lines (Atlantic, Désirée, 91E22 and POR03) were examined by a combination of biochemical, molecular and genomics approaches. These lines contained incremental levels of carotenoids, which were found to be associated with enhanced capacity of carotenoid biosynthesis as evident from norflurazon treatment. Microarray analysis of high and low carotenoid lines (POR03 versus Atlantic) revealed 381 genes that showed significantly differential expression. The carotenoid metabolic pathway genes β-carotene hydroxylase 2 (BCH2) and β-carotene hydroxylase 1 (BCH1), along with zeaxanthin epoxidase (ZEP), and carotenoid cleavage dioxygenase 1A (CCD1A) were among the most highly differentially expressed genes. The transcript levels of BCH2 and BCH1 were lowest in Atlantic and highest in POR03, whereas those of ZEP and CCD1A were high in low carotenoid lines and low in high carotenoid lines. The high expression of BCH2 in POR03 line was associated with enhanced response to sugars. Our results indicate that high levels of carotenoid accumulation in potato tubers were due to an increased metabolic flux into carotenoid biosynthetic pathway, as well as the differential expression of carotenoid metabolic genes.
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Xiangjun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: McQuinn
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Zhangjun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Fei
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Anne-Marie A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Wolters
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Joyce
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: VAN Eck
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: James J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Giovannoni
authors.affiliation: Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health, USDA-ARSDepartment of Plant Breeding and GeneticsBoyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USALaboratory of Plant Breeding, Wageningen University, PO Box 386, 6700 AJ Wageningen, the NetherlandsUSDA-ARS, 24106 N. Bunn Road., Prosser, WA 99350, USA.
authors.forename: L I
authors.initials: LI
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D053898:Biosynthetic Pathways / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D050260:Carbohydrate Metabolism / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000494:pharmacology; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism*; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D017343:Genes, Plant / Q000235:genetics; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D035281:Plant Tubers / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011198:Solanum tuberosum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002241:Carbohydrates; D010940:Plant Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D002338:Carotenoids; C100185:(all-E) phytoene